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Yasiel Puig removed from game after four innings.

Yasiel Puig was benched four innings into the Dodgers’ game against the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday for what appears to be a disciplinary reason.

Puig wasn’t injured when Skip Schumaker took over in right field with the Dodgers leading 2-0. Puig was 0 for 1 with a walk against Edwin Jackson and didn’t engage in any unusual behavior on the field. After being removed to the game, Puig calmly returned to the Dodgers’ dugout and took a seat on the topmost bench.

It’s possible that Don Mattingly wasn’t pleased when Puig didn’t slide into second base in the first inning when Carl Crawford hit a ground ball to second base, an eventual 4-6-3 double play. Puig also made a pair of one-handed “snatch” catches in right field, though he’s been making those regularly in his rookie season.

It’s also possible that Puig did something between innings, away from the field or dugout, that warranted his benching.

Puig was benched earlier this month for arriving late to a game in Miami, but he was in the Dodgers’ clubhouse on time this morning.

We’ll pass along what we learn as the game develops. The Dodgers are leading 4-0 in the sixth inning.

About J.P. Hoornstra

J.P. Hoornstra covers the Dodgers, Angels and Major League Baseball for the Los Angeles Daily News, Long Beach Press-Telegram, Torrance Daily Breeze, San Gabriel Valley Tribune, Pasadena Star-News, San Bernardino Sun, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin, Whittier Daily News and Redlands Daily Facts. Before taking the beat in 2012, J.P. covered the NHL for four years. UCLA gave him a degree once upon a time; when he graduated on schedule, he missed getting Arnold Schwarzenegger's autograph on his diploma by five months.

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